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VIDEO TUTORIAL: How To Fix Baked-In White Balance Issues With Color Correction
Filmmakers, editors and budding colorists often ask me some variation of : How do I fix white balance issues in post? Or – What’s the best method for fixing color temperature? We’ve all been there at...
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My Minimalist Post-Production Setup, Designed To Enhance Creative Output
People often ask me about my post-production setup, which has changed dramatically over the past few years. What once started out as an elaborate layout with 4 monitors, control panels and...
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PODCAST: Editing Hollywood Feature Films With Vashi Nedomansky, ACE
If you work in post-production (or just love great movies), chances are you’ve come across Vashi Nedomansky’s work. He an acclaimed ACE editor who has not only cut 11 feature films, but was also...
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Review Of The Lacie 4TB Rugged RAID Pro: The Perfect Solution For Filmmakers...
I haven’t done a gear review in a while, but after putting my new Lacie 4TB Mini RAID to the test this week I was inspired to share my results. As you read my thoughts below, know that this is not a...
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Free Day-For-Night Color Grading LUT – Download Here!
Filmmakers often ask me for advice for achieving a day-for-night look, so I thought I would outline my process here on the blog once and for all, and make my Day-For-Night color grading preset (LUT)...
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Color Grading Lesson: How To Achieve a Timeless Film Look
I recently released a Color Grading Masterclass, comprised of 12 in-depth lessons that cover the creative aspects of color correction. Countless filmmakers have now taken the course, and after a...
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7 Technical Mistakes That Will Give Away Your Film As Low-Budget
As independent filmmakers and content creators, we’re always looking for ways to maximize our production value. We want as much money as possible to actually “go up on the screen”, as the success of...
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My Thoughts On Apple’s Brand New Mac Pro & Why The Hefty Price Tag Is Justified
We’ve all been waiting a long time for the new Mac Pro to be announced, and this week Apple finally delivered one. And while it certainly impressed many of us (myself included), there was also the...
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SUNLIGHT, TWILIGHT, MOONLIGHT: The Brand New CINECOLOR “Lights” Cinematic LUT...
I’m very excited to announce the launch of my brand new CINECOLOR Cinematic LUT Master Pack: The Lights Collection. Each one of these LUTs has been optimized to enhance color, texture and mood based on...
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5 Film Movements That Should Inspire Every Micro-Budget Filmmaker
I love watching films as much as I love making them. There’s no better way to get inspired than to study great cinema, especially those films that relate to your own creative work. Over the years I’ve...
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Check Out My Behind The Scenes Blackmagic Documentary That Just Premiered At...
Last month Blackmagic Design brought me on board to direct a behind the scenes documentary for a film they sponsored titled “A Pirate’s Tale”, which just premiered yesterday during NAB. The narrative...
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The 5 Worst Mistakes To Make When Shooting In Golden Hour
I love shooting with natural light, and particularly during golden hour. In fact, whenever possible I aim to shoot exclusively with natural light, and only when necessary I will augment it with...
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How To Color Grade A Perfectly Cinematic Black And White Look
There’s a big misconception that color grading black and white projects is easier than grading in full color. While in some respects, grading in color does add an additional layer of complexity,...
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Download My Alexa-Style LUT For The URSA Mini 4.6K Here + First Impressions...
The URSA Mini seems to just keep getting better with each new update. The latest beta firmware (4.0) is the biggest leap forward yet, and one of it’s flagship features offers users the ability to load...
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BEACH BUM: A Short Film Shot On URSA Mini 4.6K With No Crew
When I was first starting out as a filmmaker I would constantly make little short films as a means to experiment with new techniques. I never went to film school, so instead I would write, direct and...
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Thoughts On The New FCP X 10.3 Update & Why Audio Lanes Are Big News
I’ve been a fan of FCP X since it was first released (despite the controversy), but over the past year I’ve been using it less and less. I’m not someone that is married to any one editing platform, and...
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What Sets Marmoset Apart From Other Music Libraries: The Search Tool
There are a lot of music licensing sites out there – some good, and others… well, not so good. In some cases, stock music sites simply just don’t offer high quality music. These lower-tier sites are...
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A Non-Technical Approach To Achieving The Cinematic Look
As independent filmmakers, we’re always chasing the elusive “cinematic look”. The ultimate goal is usually to increase production value and produce content that resembles higher end feature films, even...
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7 Ways To Speed Up Your Color Correction Process While Dramatically Improving...
Color correction is one of the most rewarding stages of post-production – largely because it allows us as filmmakers to breathe new life into our projects from a visual standpoint. At the same time, it...
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The Most Important Lesson I’ve Ever Learned About Editing Narrative Film
I recently came to an important revelation: For years I’ve been approaching my editing process completely in the wrong way. It was only after editing countless narrative projects that I began to slowly...
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Blockbuster. Arthouse. Classic. My Cinematic LUT: Genre Edition Packs Are Now...
You asked for it, so here they are! I am excited to announce that today I am releasing my new Cinematic LUT Pack: Genre Edition. Last year I released my original pack of Cinematic LUTs after many...
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A Brief Review Of The Blackmagic Mini Color Panel
I’ve had Blackmagic’s Mini Panel for DaVinci Resolve for about a month now, and after putting it to the test on a number of projects I’m finally ready to share some of my first impressions. Not long...
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How To Retain Sky Detail & Highlights When Color Grading Your Footage
I’m a sucker for natural light, and am always looking for optimal ways to capture and process my shots to ensure I’m getting the best possible results. Those of you that follow me on Instagram know...
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Download My Free “Classic Chrome” Inspired LUT Here!
Recently, I’ve been shooting a lot of footage on the Fuji X-T2, and have been absolutely loving the film simulation modes. In particular, I really love the “Classic Chrome” film simulation that this...
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Feature Film Update + Why I’m Locking My Film Reel By Reel
My upcoming feature film Shadows on the Road is currently in the finishing stages of post. Final editing tweaks, sound mixing, and scoring are all occurring simultaneously to meet our goal of having a...
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Color Grading Rant: Why Protecting Your Dynamic Range Is Killing Your Aesthetic
As we all know, high dynamic range is one of the key ingredients needed to achieve a cinematic look. This of course is because most of us really equate “cinematic” with “filmic” (whether we realize it...
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PODCAST: The 5 Most Critical Color Grading Mistakes Made By Filmmakers
Color grading tools have become more accessible than ever, and as a result filmmakers are becoming hyper aware of the role that color plays in their work. Countless filmmakers are now training...
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Why Color Contrast Is Essential For The Cinematic Look + How To Capture It On...
Having color graded countless films over the years in collaboration with other filmmakers, I’ve encountered my share of creative and technical challenges along the way. Of all of them, by far the...
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The Auteur Collection: My Latest Cinematic LUT Master Pack Is Available Now!
I am thrilled to announce that today I am officially releasing my latest master pack of Cinematic LUTs: The Auteur Collection. Thousands of you have been putting my existing LUT packs to use on your...
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PODCAST: Color Correction – Maximizing The Power Of LUTs On Set & In Post
Over the past few years, color correction tools have become extremely accessible, and more filmmakers than ever are now color grading their own footage – often using LUTs, or Look Up Tables. While LUTs...
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Video Tutorial: Using Creative LUTs In Your Color Pipeline
As a filmmaker that has long been obsessed with the power of color, I figured it was about time that I released a color grading video tutorial. Many of you have been writing in and asking for more...
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I’m Giving Away This Micro Cinema Camera, Video Assist 4K, And DaVinci...
It’s time for another giveaway! I am thrilled to once again be partnering up with Blackmagic Design, who have generously donated some incredible prizes to be awarded to one lucky reader of...
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Why Apple ProRes RAW Is A Huge Deal + How It Will Affect The Post-Production...
As some of you may have already heard, a few days ago Apple announced ProRes RAW – the next evolution in their ProRes codec lineup. For years ProRes has been the industry standard acquisition and...
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The Unique Finishing Workflow I Used To Grade, Mix, & Master My Feature Film
Over the past few weeks I’ve been working tirelessly on the finishing work for my feature film Shadows On The Road. I’ll have some big news about the film’s release very soon (and the full trailer!),...
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Why “Soft Clip” Is A Key Ingredient For The Cinematic Look + How To Easily...
There are countless variables that come into play when attempting to achieve a filmic look with digital source footage. Lighting, lensing, dynamic range, and color rendition all play a huge role in...
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How To Make Any DCP For $25 with DaVinci Resolve 15, Kakadu & Cinematiq
DCPs (or Digital Cinema Packages) have long been the gold standard for digital feature film exhibition in theatrical venues. The format was developed in the 1990’s a replacement for 35mm projection,...
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My Brand New Cinematic LUT Packs Are Officially Now Available! Choose From...
I am very excited to share my 15 Cinematic LUT packs with all of you today! As a director and colorist, I have spent countless hours color grading hundreds of projects of all shapes and sizes. From...
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Shooting F-Log On Fuji’s XT2 And Pairing It With The Brilliant New Eterna...
Fuji have yet again raised the bar for cinematic color science, this time with the flawless pairing of F-Log and their latest film simulation LUT – Eterna. For years, I’ve been blown away by Fuji’s...
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The Noam Kroll Color Grading Masterclass Has Now Launched! Check It Out Here.
I’m thrilled to announce that I am officially launching Color Grading Masterclass today! I created this course as a direct response to countless requests from my readers, who have been clamoring for a...
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7 Old School Filmmaking Techniques That Still Define Modern Cinematic Language
Cinematic language has evolved tremendously since the early days of film, but many of today’s most relevant filmmaking techniques originated in classic films… Many common visual techniques – such as...
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The Fundamental Template For Producing A Micro-Budget Feature Film Today
Those of you that follow my Sunday newsletter (micro-budget weekly), know how much I love DIY filmmaking. In many respects, it’s the only type of filmmaking that has ever made sense to me – at least...
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126 Lessons on Independent Film Directing, Cinematography, Post-Production,...
This week I decided to compile a list of some of the most important lessons I’ve learned about filmmaking over the years. They cover everything from producing and directing to camera and sound, with...
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Editing From The Gut: How I Cut My 90 Minute Feature Film In 3 Weeks
I’ve always looked for ways to use aggressive deadlines to enhance my creative productivity. Having too long to work on something, or not feeling any sense of urgency can be a total creativity killer –...
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The Making Of A 15 Second Independent Film Trailer For Facebook Advertising
This past October, my feature film Shadows On The Road launched on the iTunes Store, where we broke the top 100 pre-orders almost immediately. All our initial success was thanks to word of mouth and a...
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Introducing CINECOLOR.IO – A Brand New Platform OF 144 Cinematic LUTs For...
Two years ago I decided to start sharing some of my personal color grading LUTs with other creatives through this blog. The LUTs were engineered to help filmmakers achieve superior results while...
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Race To The Bottom: How To Stop Undercharging For Your Filmmaking Services
Every Sunday I send out an article to my newsletter subscribers, sharing advice and insight on the business and craft of micro-budget filmmaking. For the most part, these articles are never shared on...
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Cutting My Latest Feature “Psychosynthesis” On FCP X – Still My Favorite...
Almost a year ago I began production on my upcoming feature film Psychosynthesis, which will be premiering in the coming months. I have some very exciting news on that front coming soon, but today I...
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Color Grading Tutorial: Creating A Day For Night Look
Shooting scenes at night can be incredibly expensive due to additional lighting and logistical requirements, but the “Day For Night” technique offers an alternative solution. The idea is simple: Shoot...
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The Era Of The Jack Of All Trades Filmmaker Is Here & What It Means For The...
One of the most consistent pieces of advice given to upcoming filmmakers is to specialize and focus on a highly specific area of expertise. But is that advice still relevant today? I would argue maybe...
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How To Apply Color Grading LUTs Professionally + My Workflow Explained
There’s a lot of misconception and confusion around the use of color grading LUTs – in particular whether they can be used professionally and if so, how. As someone who has used countless LUTs as a...
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